


Of Mechanics and Doctors

by Khait_Khepri



Category: Doctor Who, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-20
Updated: 2014-07-20
Packaged: 2018-02-09 17:11:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,456
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1991013
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Khait_Khepri/pseuds/Khait_Khepri
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Winry Rockbell was always an ordinary girl. She didn’t do alchemy, she wasn’t military, and goodness knows she has a temper and a mean throwing arm. However, when she finds a large blue box with a light atop it on Wrench Lane, well, she learns then that perhaps ‘ordinary’ can become ‘extraordinary’. And the Doctor would show her how.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Mechanics and Doctors

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own FMA or Doctor Who. Those glorious productions belong to others. However this idea…? Well, I may have come up with it but I dare to share it in hopes of inspiring readers further.

Winry paused at the sound of an odd rushing whir pulsating and growing louder. She’d been in Rush Valley for a few months now and had settled in quite nicely after her short trip to Central with the boys. Then again, it hadn’t gone as well as she’d hoped. She’d found out Mr. Hughes had died, had watched Edward and Alphonse go off into danger yet again only for Al to come back injured from someplace while Ed went off into the desert, and who had killed her parents. Then there’d been that huge emotional upheaval and her wanting to desperately shoot Scar for his horrible deeds, Edward’s crazy move to protect her, and then meeting the _Fuhrer_ of all people! It had been incredibly hard to deal with but the people here were helping soothe those raw wounds.

Considering the odd sound, she couldn’t place it. No one else seemed to really notice it but before she could analyze it and slot it into an identifiable spot it stopped. With a sigh, she began to walk on and turned the corner onto Wrench Lane, box of parts in her arms, only to stop.

_‘That hadn’t been there earlier,’_ she mused. ‘That’ was what looked to be a large boxy telephone booth but it wasn’t like any she’d ever seen before. It was painted blue, perhaps a meter square for the footprint, and looked worn. It was maybe two and a half meters tall with paneled sides. At the top of the panels were windows that had been whited out, blocking whatever view inside despite the fact they were pretty high up. Atop the strange box was a little light that was currently not glowing. The sign around the upper edge of the box was odd. Reading it linearly it said “POLICE PUBLIC CALL BOX”. The way it was written indicated ‘police’ and ‘box’ a bit more than ‘public call’. And the label was affixed to all sides from what she could see around the top.

Circling it, she came about to what she assumed to be the front. Two signs were affixed at just below eye level and one was a crest with the words “St. John Ambulance”. The other was a bit lengthier and in various sizes of text.

POLICE TELEPHONE

FREE

FOR USE OF

PUBLIC

ADVICE & ASSISTANCE

OBTAINABLE IMMEDIATELY

OFFICERS & CARS

RESPOND TO ALL CALLS

PULL TO OPEN

Shifting her load, she did pull the little brass handle and opened the door to reveal a phone. It looked old, unused, and… Frowning, the mechanic closed it back and readjusted her grip on her parts. She looked around, noticing no one else was paying attention. Setting her box down, she decided to try the other door. There was a lock on it, but it couldn’t hurt to try. Just as she reached, though, the narrow thing sprung open and she jumped a bit with a squeak.

The person inside also seemed astonished she was there. They stared at each other for a long moment, giving the automail technician a chance to take in his appearance. He was handsome, she concluded, with regular features, a narrow frame, a nose that created a smooth unbroken line from forehead to tip, a nice enough mouth, and what seemed to be purposefully mussed brown hair, and brown eyes. He was dressed in a suit with a trench coat and shined brown shoes.

“Oh, um… Hello!” he chirped after a moment, flashing white teeth in a grin and offering up an odd accent.

“Um, hi… Is this your box?” she asked curiously.

He stood for a moment, seemingly knocked off kilter by her question. The way he stood made it impossible to see inside though she doubted there was much to see. It wasn’t a very _big_ box. He gave her a smile again and slipped out, shutting the door behind him. “Why, yes! Yes, it is!”

“Then why did you put it in the middle of the sidewalk?” she asked.

He pulled a face, blinked once, and shrugged. “Didn’t think anyone would notice.” She snorted.

“It’s big and blue and takes up a lot of space. Of course people will notice.” Only, she realized, they weren’t. Only _she_ had. Everyone else was moving along, ignoring the two and the big blue box. Or maybe they didn't want to notice. She wasn't sure. He, too, seemed to recognize this and grinned.

“Perhaps it’s only you,” he said in a stage whisper. “Now,” he continued, voice going back to his normal tone. “Who might you be?” She frowned at him.

“Winry Rockbell. And you are?”

“The Doctor.” She stood there for a moment, trying to process that. “Pleasure to meet you, Miss Rockbell.” He stuck out a hand and she shook it without much thought.

“Doctor what?” There was an impish cast to his smile when he responded.

“Just ‘the Doctor’… or ‘Doctor’ if you’re calling after me, I suppose.”

“But what’s your _name_?” she persisted. “I told you mine.” His impish look faded slight and he shook his head.

“Just the Doctor, my dear. I’m sorry. My name is musty and dusty and quite frankly a mouthful to speak. Not to mention it, I’ve not used it in so long I might as well have forgotten it.” He glanced about. “By the way, where are we?” Winry was taking in the way he had said those words. She was by no means a fool or stupid. She’d become extremely well versed in reading Edward and Alphonse through shift of the eyes, tilt of the shoulders, and tone of the voice. This was a man with a past and not one he cared to recall. There was a look in his eyes that reminded her of Edward when he recalled the accident, of Mr. Hughes when he hadn’t been acting a fool, and in her grandmother when it was the anniversary of her father’s death. Someone that had a lot on his mind and shoulders that were only barely broad enough to hold it all up and not collapse though it weighed heavily.

Her heart went out to him.

Instead of needling further, she arched a brow and snorted. “You lugged that big ugly thing here and don’t know where you put it down?” The Doctor, title or no that was all she knew to call him, looked affronted.

“She isn’t ugly!” he protested, showing a sudden passion at her words. He was territorial, which was interesting. Winry rolled her eyes and grabbed up her box of parts. Garfiel was waiting on her to return. Walking away, she heard a short rattle of wood on wood before finding herself being kept pace with the odd man. “So, where are we?”

“Rush Valley,” she told him. He frowned before a form of enlightenment crossed his face and he nodded.

“Ah, Amestris. It’s been a while since I was here last. The date?” Shooting him an odd look, she frowned.

“Did you hit your head or something?”

“No, no! Not at all. Just… I do a lot of traveling and I often forget what the date is.” There was honesty there and she shrugged before finding her load liberated.

“Hey!”

“It’s impolite to make a lady carry such a burden when a gentleman can help,” he offered, making her blush. “So, the date?”

“It’s September twenty-nine, nineteen-fourteen!”

“Thank you.” They came to Atelier Garfiel and the Doctor eyeballed the storefront before following the annoyed Winry inside. “What a fine place. Do you do automail?” She glanced at him and gave him a winsome smile, her ire sidelined for the moment.

“Yes, I do. I’m actually under apprenticeship here.” The Doctor paused as he settled the box onto a table before looking at her carefully.

“You… You said your name was Rockbell?” Winry nodded. “Ah, then it all makes sense now. I heard of the Rockbell name before… some years ago, actually. A…” He considered it. “A Pinako Rockbell, I believe, was someone making automail. Any relation?”

“My grandmother,” Winry told him with no small amount of surprise and watched him light right up.

“Ooh… It’s quite the small universe, hm?” He looked positively delighted. “Quite fascinating! Might I see some of your work?”

“Winry! Did you bring a guest?” Winry turned to see Garfiel there, eyeballing the Doctor with obvious interest. It had been kind of Dominic LeCoulte to introduce them and Winry had at first been intimidated by his large stature. Then she’d come to realize he utterly harmless… except as far as her sanity was concerned on occasion. He made it no secret he loved other men, preferred to dress in womanly attire when he could though he knew it highly impractical in a shop setting, and had become like a very odd older ‘sister’ to Winry. And he was a really good mechanic with some fascinating concepts he’d eagerly taught to her. It occurred to Winry that Garfiel had few in the way of friends due to his habits and strong personality and quirky nature. Oh, he’d gotten on with others in Rush Valley but as for real friends he always seemed to be lacking that closeness he so very desired… And there were few men that liked the loud flamboyancy Garfiel had to offer.

“Yes, Mr. Garfiel,” she told him respectfully. “Mr. Garfiel, this is the Doctor. Doctor, my teacher, Garfiel.”

“A pleasure to meet you,” offered the Doctor, holding out his hand and obviously not at all perturbed by the way Garfiel seemed to partially swoon over the accent and looks.

“A pleasure to meet you, too,” Garfiel returned in a nigh breathy tone and Winry chuckled. “What brings you to my shop?”

“Oh, just met Miss Winry here and offered to help her with carrying those parts,” the Doctor told him, gesturing vaguely at the table where the box was. Garfiel nodded.

“Well, since you did such a nice thing, would you like some tea?” The Doctor positively lit up at that.

“Of course! I do always enjoy a good cuppa.” As Garfiel busied himself making tea, the Doctor leaned closer to Winry. “Rather nice fellow. A bit odd, but nice.”

"That he is," agreed Winry with a smile.

“So, show me about?" he queried, looking about the shop. Winry nodded and began showing him some of the things that were about, careful to put away some of the plans because some things _were_ trade secrets. He didn't fuss about it, taking it in stride as she showed him the workshop and the benches. She showed him one of the partial arms she'd been working on and he admired it, making appreciative noises and the like. Winry had found his commentary... _od_ _d_. Like the tilt to his words labeled her creations as quaint and even antiquated. This was currently some of the best automail out there and yet...

“Tea!”

Soon enough the three of them were gathered about the table and chatting over various subjects. Winry couldn’t help but notice how vague the Doctor was being about details of his past. They really didn’t learn much about him at all. Nothing about his home was learned about even if he did tell some amazing tales. He talked about people, lots and lots of people, but there was a regret there that spoke of people lost. People he wouldn’t see again. People he didn’t want to talk about because the wounds were far too close yet. He preferred to go on about how he was clever or incite them into their own tales with perfectly aimed words. Oh, he was very good at hiding it but Winry could tell. She could always tell when Ed and Al were hiding something from her and this Doctor might be better at hiding things but he wasn’t perfect and she’d had practice seeing beyond the mask of ‘nothing’s wrong’. She had learned how to read a suit of armor, after all.

After tea, the Doctor wandered off and she worked on a customer’s leg. No surprise, really, that her mind strayed continuously to that odd man. It was cause for a few pinched fingers and bruised knuckles when her ratchet or screwdriver slipped.

Once she got a break, she wandered from the shop and to the corner of Wrench Lane, looking for that blue box and its owner. She found the box, of course, and tested the handle to find it was locked tight. Unsurprising really, what with the keyhole just below the handle.

“You’re really curious about that, aren’t you?” Jumping, Winry spun to find the odd man watching her with amusement. She sputtered a bit before bringing herself back together.

“Well, I… I can’t see you hauling it around on your back and it doesn’t look like it could travel as there are no _wheels_.” The Doctor’s grin widened further.

“There are other ways to travel than with wheels, though…” He shrugged. “I know Amestris doesn’t have much in the way of ships.”

She recalled a point from his chatter and curiously considered him. “You came from a nation where there was a coast, right?” He nodded.

“Visited, mostly. I became rather fond of merry ol’ England.” She’d never heard of such a country. “And there are seas out there that have nothing to do with water at all.” He cocked his head, a knowing smile on his lips that nearly hid all the sadness but there was clearly enthusiasm there. “Would you like to see inside her?”

She considered that. It was odd he denoted the box as feminine. Turning it over in her mind, she nodded, curiosity eating at her. “I’d like to.”

“Well, come on, then!” He moved to the door, pulled out a key, and slotted it into the keyhole. Turning it, access to the interior was quickly gained. “On in you go!” And then he went in, holding the door open.

Winry felt her jaw go slack as she approached the narrow opening. Her eyes were wide as she slid through the panel door, taking in the vastly different interior than she’d ever expected. “Oh…” The Doctor closed the door behind her but she wasn’t paying attention. “It’s…” Turning to take in all the sights, the automail engineer began to absorb what her eyes were telling her. It was huge inside his little meter-square-footprint box. There was a platform that surrounded what could only be an odd circular control panel with dials and screens and levers attached. In the middle of the panel was a column of some kind, glowing and alien. The entire thing was alien. The walls were large bronze panels with circular and hexagonal somethings attached that looked rather like overlarge hex nuts, organic-looking structural beams arching overhead to support the large room, and it seemed a hallway going off to someplace.

Bringing her eyes to the Doctor standing near the entrance as he watched her reaction, she saw the doorway looked like she expected from the blue box but that had been the _only_ thing that looked remotely fitting of the exterior appearance.

“How?”

It was a vast question for three simple letters. He smiled at her astonishment before shifting forward. “This…” He gestured about them in a grandiose sweeping way. “…is the T.A.R.D.I.S. My ship.”

She blinked. “Ship?” He nodded.

“T.A.R.D.I.S. is actually an acronym for ‘Time and Relative Dimension in Space’,” he offered further. “Which means she is far bigger than the outside suggests.”

“Space?” Winry asked blankly. He nodded.

“Yep!” He popped the ‘p’ sound. “Space. As in, spaceship. But not _just_ a spaceship.” Winry’s mind was numb at the moment but she offered another question.

“Who _are_ you?”

“That I’ve answered once before,” he admitted. “The Doctor. Yes, it is a title but it is what I am. I am the Doctor and the Doctor is me.” He came nearer but stopped short of getting too close. “I’m not human, Miss Winry,” he admitted with obvious honestly. “Not in the slightest. I might look it. I might sound it, but I am not what you would call ‘human’. I am a ‘Time Lord’.”

She stared at him. “Time… Lord?” He’d mentioned time before. It was a part of his ship’s name. He nodded with a wry smile.

“I travel through space and time.” Her eyes turned to the strange machine in the center of the large round room. “And yes, that is how I do it.” There was a moment and then a question came. “How would you like to see another world? Another time? Anywhere at all?” Spinning about, Winry stared at him in shock.

“What?!”

“Something’s special about you, Miss Winry,” the Doctor told her. “And it’s rare my T.A.R.D.I.S. takes me to a place I am not needed or wanted in some way even if I plan differently. She has a mind of her own, she does, and I doubt the reason I came to this time and place was because of Mister Garfiel’s fantastic tea.”

“Go with you?” she asked. He nodded. “But I have a job!” It occurred to her that she was making excuses. She wanted so very much to find out how this amazing place worked, to find out how that glorious yet alien machine worked… He grinned at her.

“Well, we can just pop right back here a few minutes after we leave, yes? That’s the brilliant thing about time machines.”

Her resolve was wavering. She really wanted to find out more. This was incredible.

Guilt surged through her as she thought of Ed and Al. And not just them. Garfiel and Granny and Paninya and…

But… this was a time machine?

The Doctor clearly saw her confused expression, clearly saw that she was wavering. He watched as she considered the place about them before turning to him again. “You can… bring me right back, right?”

“Absolutely,” he assured.

“Like… a couple minutes after I’d gone?” He nodded.

“Yes, I certainly can.” She thought about it, checked her watch. “So, what do you say?”

Winry looked up at him, amazed at how easy it was to trust him. Here he was some stranger she’d barely met. Here he was, the only thing going for him was this amazing machine of his, his ship, and the fact he seemed genuine even if he hid so much pain.

She walked up to him and thrust out her hand. “Bring me back here in ten minutes and we have ourselves a deal!” she grinned. He gave her a delighted laugh.

“Brilliant, Miss Winry Rockbell! Brilliant!” He grasped her hand, shaking it firmly. “Now, I’m sure a lover of all things mechanical like you would be fascinated by this!” He bounced – _bounced_ – around her and to the control panel and she followed eagerly as he began flicking seemingly random switches. “Now, the fun thing about time and space is that almost everywhere and everywhen is open to you!” He gave her a crooked grin as he fiddled with a dial. “Well, except for places I’ve been before but that’s of little matter. The universe is a big place when you have all of time to explore, too.”

“So, what are you doing?” she asked, eyeballing the controls as they began to light up, a few with odd noises, and the shaft in the center began pulsating. “And where are we going?”

“Oh, there is a _delightful_ moon that I’d love to show you.” He cranked a few other nobs and bobs, moving about the panel in random ways as the sounds grew and grew. “And such a people that live there… It’s been a while since I’ve last seen them. I wonder how they’re doing.”

“But… where?”

“Oh, that’ll be quite the surprise for you once we arrive,” he told her. He stilled next to a lever. “Now, Miss Winry. Last chance. The moment I throw this lever, we’ll be off.”

She considered him, considered what she was leaving, and then gave an enthusiastic grin. He responded with his own, laughing a bid madly. He threw down the lever and that strange pulsating whirring wheeze sounded out, the T.A.R.D.I.S. rumbling mightily as she grasped instinctively at the edge of the panel she stood near.

“Allons-y!” the Doctor called as Winry watched.

Unknown to her, the Police Box began to slowly fade out of sight from the corner, no one paying attention to the oddity. But all she knew was that she was fascinated by what she was seeing…

And finally she’d get to have an adventure like Edward and Alphonse.

**Author's Note:**

> Author’s Note: A one-shot devised in the course of two to three hours. Forgive me if I get characterization wrong but I haven’t watched much of the 10th Doctor and I pulled a bit of the 4th Doctor to kind of pad him out as they both are zany. Anyway, I thought that, of all the people in FMA, Winry would make a great Companion. Additionally note that this wasn’t overly scrubbed or polished so it might be a bit rough.
> 
> Please leave a comment if you will. I do appreciate it.


End file.
